Author Topic: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread  (Read 14555926 times)

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Offline nixiefreqq

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39000 on: September 16, 2019, 09:24:16 pm »
OK.....what is that in English?  :-DD Google goes apeshit trying to translate.  :scared:

"med6753 benutzt UPN."  --> "med6753 is using reverse polish notation."   ;D

Nixiefreqq.....I think he just called us stupid but I'm not sure.  :-// :-DD I can't seem to flush out the cob webs today. I slept real late and I'm still in a haze.  :o

sorry.......was out to monday lunch with the retired geezers and have fallen behind.

well......we probably are stupid.  but that does not mean we can let some chooch point it out in public.

on your say so we will go to the mattresses.

ps  leave the cannoli


edit  or are we supposed to take the cannoli?   fuck!  maybe one of us IS stupid.

« Last Edit: September 16, 2019, 09:28:41 pm by nixiefreqq »
free range primate
 

Offline med6753

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39001 on: September 16, 2019, 09:30:00 pm »
The 465B/DM44 is back in the case and ready to spend a few weeks on the torture rack. The 485 has successfully put up with multiple beatings on the rack and will now get a much deserved rest.

So.....of all the Tek junk here that just leaves 2 items outstanding. First, the 7A16A plug-in I got the other day needs some minor high frequency tweaking. That's tomorrow's project. Should be an easy fix. Then there's the other 485 with the bastard trigger issue. I may get to that later this week or next week. That's going to involve stripping Bench 1 clean so I can get both on it at the same time and do comparison troubleshooting.
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Offline mnementh

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39002 on: September 16, 2019, 09:44:38 pm »


Did... did... did somebody say cannoli...?

mnem
Sooooo long since I had cannoli...
alt-codes work here:  alt-0128 = €  alt-156 = £  alt-0216 = Ø  alt-225 = ß  alt-230 = µ  alt-234 = Ω  alt-236 = ∞  alt-248 = °
 

Offline nixiefreqq

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39003 on: September 16, 2019, 10:52:11 pm »


Did... did... did somebody say cannoli...?

mnem
Sooooo long since I had cannoli...

damn.  hope your diet did not become collateral damage in our vendetta.
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Offline nixiefreqq

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39004 on: September 16, 2019, 11:00:55 pm »
Just won some more HP goodness. I really don't need it but it was in pretty good condition. 5316B  :-+



Not sure what timebase it has in it but if it's a poo one I have an excuse to build a replacement OCXO :)

Edit: just realised I'm going to need a common frequency standard now and distribution for it. Hmm can of worms now opened :-DD


always wondered what one of those would be like.  but they looked too much like a mini 5328....and the 5328 was pretty boring.

wait a second?   didn't you once trash talk the 5328?

will be very interested in your comments on the 5316.

this guy ships to the US, AND MANY OTHER COUNTRIES.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/HP-5087A-Distribution-Amplifier-6-X-10-MHz-Output-Channels/173986753809?epid=1638448964&hash=item28826b2d11:g:Z3wAAOSwlMpdRwX0
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Offline bd139

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39005 on: September 16, 2019, 11:10:46 pm »
Not my first one that. I had a 5315A a few years back with OCXO in it.  They are very nice counters generally. Killer feature is the trigger voltage level is available on the front panel as well. If you can, get one with option c on it (1GHz). Picture of my old one, and my 427A which I also regret selling  :-DD. This happened about 4 years ago now :(. Depicting some playing around with super VXOs.



I don't like the 5328A. Had one! While it's a nice counter, the damn things are sooooo noisy and if you have to repair one it's impossible without extender boards. Also the knob on the front panel usually falls to bits. None of these are a problem with the 5316A/B.

I think I am turning into an HP collector!

Edit: just to note, the HP 5334B I own is a far better counter but i have nostalgia for the 531x counters as it was the first counter i had that wasn't a total piece of shit!
« Last Edit: September 16, 2019, 11:18:51 pm by bd139 »
 

Offline xrunner

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39006 on: September 16, 2019, 11:11:58 pm »
Edit: just realised I'm going to need a common frequency standard now and distribution for it. Hmm can of worms now opened :-DD

G

      P
S
D

     O

I told my friends I could teach them to be funny, but they all just laughed at me.
 
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Offline bd139

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39007 on: September 16, 2019, 11:16:39 pm »
Got one already  :-DD

(Leo Bodnar)
 
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Offline xrunner

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39008 on: September 16, 2019, 11:19:04 pm »
Got one already  :-DD

(Leo Bodnar)

Good, but don't you ever wonder if the satellites are really accurate? It bothers me all the time. They might be off a tad.  |O
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Offline bd139

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39009 on: September 16, 2019, 11:32:22 pm »
Good, but don't you ever wonder if the satellites are really accurate? It bothers me all the time. They might be off a tad.  |O

They're mostly not, for certain definitions of accurate. But look what happens if you go too deep into those concerns  :-DD

 
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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39010 on: September 16, 2019, 11:37:09 pm »
Considering the distances involved with GPS and the fact that a good lock could land a hand grenade close enough to me to put me in the hospital ... or the morgue ... I think I'd be OK with the error.


... but, then, I'm not a true time nut.





(yet)
 
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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39011 on: September 16, 2019, 11:40:03 pm »
Oh ... and I thought I should add some balance to my previous offering:

 
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Offline xrunner

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39012 on: September 16, 2019, 11:50:48 pm »
LOL there's 21 "guests" viewing this thread right now, they must think we're all crazy.   :-DD
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Offline neo

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39013 on: September 16, 2019, 11:57:25 pm »
LOL there's 21 "guests" viewing this thread right now, they must think we're all crazy.

Let's be fair, I think we're all crazy. It's why I like it here!  :-DD
A hopeless addict (and slave) to TEA and a firm believer that high frequency is little more than modern hoodoo.
 
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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39014 on: September 17, 2019, 12:26:54 am »
LOL there's 21 "guests" viewing this thread right now, they must think we're all crazy.

Let's be fair, I think we're all crazy. It's why I like it here!  :-DD

Forget calculator wars ... this works in this thread on its own merits!

 
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Offline med6753

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39015 on: September 17, 2019, 01:14:53 am »
An old gray beard with an attitude.
 
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Offline dcbrown73

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39016 on: September 17, 2019, 01:42:09 am »
I picked up a super clean Heathkit SG-8 in original condition.    I just need to re-cap it, check the resistors, and align it and it should be like new!

There isn't any rust or even much dust on the inside.  It's like it's been stored in a sealed time machine.





Why exactly do people feel I should have read their post before I responded?  As if that was necessary for me to get my point across.
 
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Offline xrunner

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39017 on: September 17, 2019, 01:59:00 am »
I picked up a super clean Heathkit SG-8 in original condition.    I just need to re-cap it, check the resistors, and align it and it should be like new!

There isn't any rust or even much dust on the inside.  It's like it's been stored in a sealed time machine.


Wow really clean! I had a Heathkit RF generator back in the day, not that model. I do remember the RF connectors though. Do you have the connectors to make cables for it?
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Offline bitseekerTopic starter

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39018 on: September 17, 2019, 02:13:40 am »
A long and sorry saga, how hard can it be to fix a 12MHz counter with discrete 7 series logic ?  Well if it is dunderhead VK5RC it can take a month or so. :wtf:
Long story short -  a buggered SN7400N and an ancient epitaxial transistor - I managed to find one of the transistors on FleeceBay, I wanted to keep it 'original'
EVENTUALLY I have got it working. Below it is reading a 12MHZ after 15mins warmup :-+



Very nice, Rob! Reminds me of the one in my queue (which also needs attention). ;D

why do you suppose they labeled it  "12.5 Mhz"?

was marketing making a point?

Yes, a decimal one.

Quote
would 13 Mhz have been unlucky?

Three digits look bigger than two.

Quote
was it an inside joke?

Poking fun at rubbish counters that could only go up to 12.
« Last Edit: September 17, 2019, 03:35:50 am by bitseeker »
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Offline worsthorse

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39019 on: September 17, 2019, 02:23:05 am »
Damn, I am away from a computer for two days and it takes me two hours to catch up on this thread...

Had a chance to sit at my bench for the first time in days. Started working on 2831D, hoping to finish it tonight. No such luck.

Such a simple project... clean it up, do some basic adjustments with the calibrated sources I have and put it out for sale.  I even got B+K to send me a service manual with schematics. Was running through the calibration procedure and found that the 2V range adjustment pot was stripped.  |O



It was probably stripped because the 2V adjustment was still out of range with the pot all the way CCW.  And why? Well because the wrong value resistor was installed in the voltage divider chain.  It doesn't look like it has been repaired, so I guess it has been wrong from day one. |O

And then there are the schematics.  Wires jump from sheet to sheet but the designators don't match. Switches aren't labeled.  Wires end in the middle of nowhere.  |O





If I wasn't a glutton for punishment, I'd button it back up and see if I can sell it for what I paid for it.

specialization is for insects.
 
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Offline med6753

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39020 on: September 17, 2019, 02:27:53 am »
I picked up a super clean Heathkit SG-8 in original condition.    I just need to re-cap it, check the resistors, and align it and it should be like new!

There isn't any rust or even much dust on the inside.  It's like it's been stored in a sealed time machine.


Wow really clean! I had a Heathkit RF generator back in the day, not that model. I do remember the RF connectors though. Do you have the connectors to make cables for it?

Agreed....nice shape!  :-+  I don't recall what those RF connectors are called and I'm not sure you can get BNC adapters for them.
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Offline Cubdriver

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39021 on: September 17, 2019, 02:34:23 am »
LOL there's 21 "guests" viewing this thread right now, they must think we're all crazy.   :-DD

Hey man - if the shoe fits...   ;)

-Pat
If it jams, force it.  If it breaks, you needed a new one anyway...
 
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Offline ArthurDent

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39022 on: September 17, 2019, 02:35:23 am »
Good, but don't you ever wonder if the satellites are really accurate? It bothers me all the time. They might be off a tad.  |O

They're mostly not, for certain definitions of accurate. But look what happens if you go too deep into those concerns  :-DD



Reminded me of this reference to Richard Feynman...
« Last Edit: September 17, 2019, 02:38:03 am by ArthurDent »
 
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Offline bitseekerTopic starter

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39023 on: September 17, 2019, 02:41:05 am »
Does anyone know what I might use an HP 6177C current source for? Looks like 500mA with 50V compliance. There’s a rather nice looking one on eBay. I can’t think of a use now for one off the top of my head but I will probably find a use for one in the future and regret not buying it if I do.

bd, I've been seeing those around lately, too. One will go nicely in your growing HP collection. ;) Here's a thread for ya. Not only does it have repair info, it has a mod to add a lower, 500 µA current range.

https://www.eevblog.com/forum/repair/hp-6177c-dc-current-source-repair-and-restoration-(complete)/
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Offline bitseekerTopic starter

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #39024 on: September 17, 2019, 02:51:30 am »
I was looking for a new handheld multimeter. Was initially thinking of buying a Fluke 87 Since I wanted better accuracy and digits.

But since the Fluke 87 are still pretty expensive, I ended up finding a way better deal with a HP 974a. I didn't really know about those meter and found it on ebay by accident. Specs are pretty good (4.5 digits, 50000 counts, 0.05% accuracy) and it's in pretty good shape. The unit I have was calibrated in 2018 and is due in 2021. I'm pretty happy with my purchase.



Cool. I don't often see these old HP handheld DMMs. Added to POI.
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